It's Officially Official: Yahoo Will Own Tumblr (Officially)
How many times can you confirm a piece of news? One more time! Yahoo's Marissa Mayer just announced the $1.1 billion deal over conference call and cheeky GIF-enabled press release. Yes, more ads are coming to Tumblr.
Although Mayer repeatedly said the mothership will let David Karp's mega-platform to continue on its own trajectory, she also confirmed the obvious: Tumblr needs to start making money. That money will come in through increased ad placement and cross-promotions with Yahoo's existing sites and services.
But don't worry: the press release swears "We promise not to screw it up" and then tacks on a jokey "Keep Calm and Carry On" GIF about "freaking out"—the most ham-fisted attempt at corporate self-awareness we've seen in some time. If you have to state it that much, guys...
David Karp—who is receiving a "small" amount of Yahoo stock as part of the deal—didn't join Mayer in the call.